People often tell me that I have an amazing gift.

I’m always a little baffled when I hear that. Not to sound self-deprecating, but what does that mean? What do these well-intentioned folk mean by ‘gift’? A special talent? Something that was bestowed upon me by some greater power? Something I was born with?

Or is it something that I cultivated?

I wasn’t born a reflexologist, and neither was I born an inspiring teacher.

I cultivated skills to be able to do what I do.  And, these skills were acquired later in my life.

I didn’t have a clue in my earlier years what I ‘wanted to be when I grew up’. I just kind of followed my nose and did whatever interested me. That road eventually led me to formalized trainings in subjects such as herbology, nutrition, meditation, aromatherapy, personal growth, massage therapy and yes, reflexology.

The one thing I did know at a very early age was that I wasn’t cut out to be a school teacher (boring), bank teller (hate math) or nurse (fainted at the sight of blood). And those were the only job opportunities placed in front of me! That was it!

I knew that I didn’t want a job that just paid me. I wanted to derive meaning from my work and I wanted to look forward to getting up every morning to do that work. I wanted to contribute something of value.

Does this sound like you? Do you yearn for more than just work? Do you want what you do to matter? And to be rewarded monetarily for your time and skill?

Well, you can have that. No matter how young or old you are, how healthy or unhealthy, how confident or not so confident. If you hold a sincere desire to heal yourself and through that process to touch the lives of as many other people as possible to help them improve the quality of their lives, then you can fashion a life for yourself that matters.

I know you can – because I did!

My real passion is to inspire others on their chosen path of self-inquiry. And yes, I realize that path may not be a career as a practicing reflexologist.

Participation in the Therapeutic Hand & Foot Reflexology Professional Certification may turn you in another direction. That’s fine with me. And that’s because the mission of the Academy of Ancient Reflexology is to create an environment in which people learn how they can improve first the quality of their own lives – and then others – through the vehicles of reflexology, aromatherapy, service and self-awareness – or – perhaps not.

The 2019 Therapeutic Hand & Foot Reflexology Professional Certification starts April 4 in Gainesville, Florida. Join me for a comprehensive course like nothing you have experienced before.

Are you lusting to start a new business, but afraid you’re ‘too old’ to make a go of it? Well, think again!

Recent reports in an AARP bulletin stated that nearly half of older workers are in jobs they started since turning 50, and forty percent of people working at age 62 changed their careers after turning 55!

That’s affirming for all of us who are compelled to make a big change in our lives.

I can attest to the rewards of making such a leap from personal experience. I was 40 years old when I earned a license in the state of Florida that legally allowed me to forge a clinical practice and teaching career centered solely (pun intended) on reflexology. I’ll turn 69 this year and am still going strong, and loving what I do.

After years of working in the entertainment, arts and hospitality industries, starting over in a totally unrelated field did not mean starting from scratch. Far from it! I brought with me years of hard-earned assets that put me at a tremendous advantage over those with less life experience than I.

Here’s the truth: Most people who are drawn to study reflexology are 45 years of age and older. So, if switching gears and spending your days (or a few hours/week) helping others to feel better utilizing hand and/or foot reflexology protocols is something that interests you, take heed of some of the advantages you bring to the table just by having lived this long!

1. You have a vast amount of experience that can be adapted to a career in healthcare. In some way or another, your life has included sales, marketing, compassionate listening, interpersonal skills, simple accounting practices, organization – all of that will contribute to your easy slide into success as a reflexologist.

2. People tend to become more empathetic as the years pile up. I’m not sure why this is; maybe it’s because we’ve survived some hard knocks ourselves and can relate to others in their struggle. No matter what, our heightened compassion and kindness towards others are well-suited to a natural healthcare practice.

3. You have an extensive network of people in your life – and I can guarantee you that many of these folks – especially the mature ones – will be very excited to know about the new gifts you have to offer. More and more people are looking for non-pharmaceutical ways to treat their imbalances. Reflexology can address not only musculoskeletal pain but digestive distress, respiratory issues, endocrine disorders and immune systems under attack.

4. Resilience and patience are attributes that come with age. No doubt, you’ve been knocked down a time or two, whether from personal loss or your own health challenges. Your track record of having picked yourself up and put one foot in front of the other will serve you well in reinventing yourself now.

5. Maybe the stars have finally lined up! Are you an empty nester? Newly single? Got the time to finally pursue what you’ve always wanted to do? Is it finally time for YOU?

6. Careers started later in life are most often centered on a search for meaning, purpose or creative growth. We want to give back, to serve others in a way that we’ve never touched into before. Your faith in yourself and the purpose your life was given truly can be investigated now.

Contact me if you would like to explore the idea of a career in reflexology. I have helped countless people navigate the thoughts and questions that eventually led to the right decision for them; I’d be honored to do that for you too. No strings attached. 904.553.4067

For my entire life, I’ve always been told that money can’t buy happiness; and I’ve always just accepted that statement as true.

But the other day, I listened to a TED radio podcast that pointed to the fact that the idea that money can or can’t buy happiness is more complex than it might appear on the surface.

Turns out it’s what we do with money that determines our level of happiness. Not the amount of money we have.

As an example, if I gave you $3000, and you spent that on a blowout week in Las Vegas, you’d likely have a good time during your time there, but it would not contribute to your overall sense of happiness and fulfillment.

On the other hand, if you used that money to help build a safe playground for underprivileged children in your community, or invested the money in an educational or enrichment program that prepared you to help others – now, that’s a different story.

According to Michael Norton, Associate Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School, it turns out that the key is to use your money for ‘social spending’; putting your money where it benefits others most. That can be from direct giving (like the playground example above) or from learning a skill that can benefit others in the long run.

So, it’s not that money can’t buy happiness. It’s that we’re not spending money in the right way. Studies show that people who spend money in a way that will benefit others are happier people.

I can count myself as one of those folks. The day I decided to leave the lucrative advertising and entertainment field and become a reflexologist was the day I began to build a foundation of true happiness, not just happy experiences. My happiness grows being able to help improve the lives of others.

If reflexology looks like a good way for you to invest your money and time in order to help others, then I invite you to take a look at the Therapeutic Hand & Foot Reflexology Professional Certification. 2018 classes start the beginning of April, and class size is limited.

Saturn moves into Capricorn today, and in the astrology world, that is considered the most important transit of the year. Why?

Saturn’s job is to help you to realize great accomplishments, to push you to make a difference in the world, leaving behind something you can be proud of. In a nutshell, Saturn is here to help you fulfill your mission in life; why you were born.

Saturn helps you to become the best version of yourself through maturity and introspection, hard work and determination, and by learning the skills you need to create your mark on history.

Capricorn is associated with the Midheaven, the highest point in the sky at the time when you were born. So, when Saturn enters Capricorn, you have the rare opportunity to see things clearly. Capricorn points to who you aspire to be and what you aspire to do. Capricorn brings forth ambition, action, and self-motivation.

Now is the time to reach for the sky, fulfill the promise of your natal chart. Now is the time to think deeply about what it is you really want to do with your life. With Saturn and Capricorn on your side, expect clarity, patience, and perseverance to guide your path.

Since you are reading this, I am going to imagine that reflexology has played around in your imagination to some degree. So, I’m going to be bold here and say that if your pull has always been to help others, earn a decent living while doing so, and feel proud about what your work, then I respectfully suggest you register for the 2018 Therapeutic Hand & Foot Reflexology Professional Certification. No one who has ever taken this program has regretted it!

Think seriously about it. With Saturn in Capricorn, it has never been a better time to embrace the next best version of you. Make 2018 the year you actualize your purpose!

I’ve been teaching for over 30 years. One thing I have noticed over that time is that many people have a lot of anxiety around learning environments. A lot of adults remember really awful classroom experiences from their childhood, where they were shamed for having a different learning style, endured test anxiety, or were expected to just sit there all day breathing in information and never being given the opportunity to breathe out any questions or opinions or doubts.

Those past experiences, when carried into the present day, can really spoil an amazing opportunity to re-frame the experience of learning. To allay as many fears as I can in advance, I like to provide a blueprint for what people can expect during the Therapeutic Hand & Foot Reflexology Professional Certification.

So here is what the Academy instructors strive to create in the classroom:

Our intention is to provide ample time for the study and experience of Reflexology within a safe, stimulating and supportive environment.

We will begin each day preparing ourselves for the work that we do. There are many ways: quiet contemplation to focus attention on what’s important; a body-scan while following the breath; simple body movements relative to the day’s studies; a chance to “check-in” – report anything of significance in our lives that we need to clear before we can be present.

Working from a holistic model of education, we have designed this program to nurture, not control. The Therapeutic Hand & Foot Reflexology Professional Certification is a feast for learning that uses a variety of teaching methods that will grab your interest and guarantee your success in grasping the program’s extensive content. We seek to encompass and integrate multiple layers of meaning and experience, rather than narrowly define human possibilities.

The classroom space will be what is termed both bounded and open – the instructor will guide discussions towards the topic, while at the same time allowing students the space to formulate and share their own ideas. The environment shall be open to the voice of the individual and the collective; shall honor the “little” stories of the individual as well as the “bigger” stories of the world’s disciplines and traditions, and shall respect speech and solitude as essential to the full realization of what the inner teacher is trying to say.

The quality of relationship within the community is held to be sacred, dynamic and authentic, not manipulative or hierarchical. Participants will take responsibility for co-creating the classroom experience along with the instructor. Respect and kindness are assumed. Sacredness, humor, silence, seriousness and fun co-exist smoothly.